Steven Seagal Tells Off BP British Petroleum

good analysis and keep in mind in November. Mr. Blunt is one of the oil favorites

Deborah Rudacille reads "Smoke" at the Baltimore 510

very good presentation on steelworkers

November 25, 2008 — Deborah Rudacille reads "Smoke" at the Baltimore 510 Reading Series, November 15th 2008 at Minas Gallery.

You can learn more about the Baltimore 510 Readings, Baltimore's only dedicated fiction reading series on http://510readings.blogspot.com/
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At one time, Bethlehem Steel’s Sparrow Point, plant near Baltimore, Md., employed 36,000 people. It was the world’s largest steel plant in the mid 1950s. Today, the sprawling complex is owned by a Russian conglomerate and employs about 2,500, about 1,800 of whom belong to the United Steelworkers. (USW). Yesterday, management announced as many as 600 workers could be laid off on July 1

CANMAKERS REUNION PICNIC

CANMAKERS REUNION PICNIC

Calling all St. Louis can makers from:
AMERICAN-NATIONAL CAN, CONTINENTAL CAN, &
CROWN, CORK, & SEAL COMPANY

All past employees including steelworkers, machinists, lithographers,
electricians, office workers, supervisors, management, and their family
members are invited to attend. Mark your calendar now, and be sure to
tell all your past fellow workers that you see or hear from.

Sat. August 21, 2010. 11 A.M. to Dusk

Where: Kircher Park, Pavilion # 2, Eureka, MO. at Highways 109 & I-44
What to bring: Your drinks, potluck item (homemade, or store bought to share, bring lawn chairs, & games (Horseshoes, washers, playing cards, Frisbee golf course available, etc.

Sandwiches will be provided & will be served at 12:00 noon

$1, 50-50 donation drawing at 2:00 P.M. (3 winners)


Directions: Kircher Park is located in Eureka just south of Interstate
Highway 44 on Williams Road on the south side of I-44. If going west
on I-44 from St. Louis, exit at State Route 109, turn left, go under I-44,
then go immediately back onto I-44 eastbound for about a quarter-
mile. Then exit I-44 at Williams Road (Exit 265). The park is on the
right at the bottom of the exit ramp. (Parking lot and street parking)


For more information & R.S.V.P. contact: Tom Crisp 573-358-8648, (ANC), or Jim Schaffer (ANC), 636-938-1337

Sponsored by S.O.A.R. (Steelworkers of Active Retirees) St. Louis Chapter 11-3

award winning labor vid Minneapolis Truckers Make History

fantastic and long overdue. we need more projects like this.

http://www.mefeedia.com/watch/28637829





Teaching labor in the schools: New opportunities
By Deborah Rosenstein
2 May 2010 MINNEAPOLIS - To provide more resources for teaching about workers and labor history, the Labor Education Service has released a new video and website devoted to teaching about the Minneapolis truckers’ strikes of 1934. LES also has embarked on a new student-focused project documenting the history of the state Capitol.
Meanwhile, the AFL-CIO, the American Federation of Teachers, the National Education Association and the United Association for Labor Education have all passed resolutions supporting the expansion of labor-in-the-schools efforts.

Some states, including Wisconsin, have passed legislation requiring labor history to be taught in the schools.

Multimedia classroom resources available
The 1934 strike by Minneapolis Teamsters was the most important single event in Minnesota labor history and paved the way for landmark federal worker rights legislation. Yet few Minnesota students learn about this important struggle.

LES hopes to address this need through a new website, video and curriculum titled “Minneapolis Truckers Make History.” An 18-minute film, designed for classroom use, chronicles the strike and helps students connect their own lives with people in the 1930s. The video streams on the website, www.minneapolis1934.org and is also available to purchase on DVD through LES and the Minnesota Historical Society.

While supplies last, Minnesota teachers may request one free copy for classroom use. Interested teachers should contact les@umn.edu.

Minneapolis1934.org contains a wealth of resources, including participatory classroom activities, a list of speakers, ideas for field trips, art, music, biographies of key individuals and more. An annotated list of other online resources for teaching about labor is also included. The video and website were funded, in part, by the Education Minnesota Foundation.

New project in development
LES staff hope that “Minneapolis Truckers Make History” will be the first of many projects designed for classroom teachers. “Who Built the Capitol?” a new initiative designed to uncover the names and stories of the workers who constructed the Minnesota state Capitol, is now underway. Once completed, “Who Built the Capitol?” will bring another important chapter of Minnesota’s labor history to classrooms via video and accompanying curriculum. Read more about this project on Workday Minnesota.

While developing “Minneapolis Truckers Make History” and “Who Built the Capitol?,” LES staff received critical guidance from middle and high school teachers across the state.

LES also brought presentations about “Minneapolis Truckers Make History” to this year’s Education Minnesota Professional Conference, the Minnesota Council for Social Studies Annual Conference, the Minnesota Association of Alternative Programs Annual Conference and the St. Paul Federation of Teachers Professional Conference.

To request a free presentation about “Minneapolis Truckers Make History” or other labor-in-the-schools material, e-mail Deborah Rosenstein.

State legislation provides boost
Since 2002, California has designated the first week of April as “Labor History Week.” Its purpose is to encourage schools "to commemorate this week with appropriate educational exercises that make pupils aware of the role the labor movement has played in shaping California and the United States."

In December 2009, Wisconsin’s governor signed the “Labor History in the Schools” bill into law after 12 years of organizing by workers, unions and allies. “Once again Wisconsin leads the way in progressive labor legislation,” commented Steve Cupery, president of the Wisconsin Labor History Society.

In West Virginia, a bill similar to Wisconsin’s has been introduced.

The Minnesota AFL-CIO plans to support labor-in-the-schools legislation in Minnesota during the next session. A number of representatives have already expressed interest in supporting such a law, said Jennifer Schaubach, the federation’s legislative director.

Labor resolutions
During their 2008 convention, AFT delegates passed a resolution calling for a national task force and conference devoted to K-12 Labor Education (the NEA had previously passed a similar resolution). The AFL-CIO convention followed suit in 2009 and UALE did so this year. Labor educators hope the momentum created by these resolutions will lead to greater coordination and support for labor-in-the-schools initiatives.

Deborah Rosenstein, staff member at the Labor Education Service, is spearheading the LES effort to provide more curriculum for teaching about labor

wall street and mr Blunt

odd this is asked of wall street for a "defender" of main street.


Published on Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (http://www.citizensforethics.org)

A blatant example of how money, politics and policy collide
By crew
Created 14 Apr 2010 - 9:59am
As the Senate begins debate over financial reform, Chris Harris from Media Matters [1] documents how politics and policy are influenced by Wall Street money. And, it doesn't seem like the Senate Republican leadership is being the least bit subtle about it:

In February, the Wall Street Journal reported [2]that Republicans were "stepping up their campaign to win donations from Wall Street. In discussions with Wall Street executives, Republicans are striving to make the case that they are banks' best hope of preventing President Barack Obama and congressional Democrats from cracking down on Wall Street."

Two months later, it seems the GOP is relying on the same strategy. In return for obstructing Democratic legislation to hold Wall Street CEOs accountable, Republican lawmakers are pressing bankers for financial help heading into the November elections.

FoxBusiness.com reported [3]that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and National Republican Senatorial Committee chairman John Cornyn (R-TX) had a "private meeting" with "25 Wall Street executives, many of them hedge fund managers." After listening to "numerous complaints the executives have with the bill," the GOP lawmakers reportedly assured the bankers that Republicans would be their ally in the fight. After discussing likely Republican electoral gains this November, "McConnell and Cornyn made it clear they need Wall Street's help."

A day after the story broke about McConnell's "private meeting" with Wall Street bigwigs, he stormed onto the Senate floor to spout false attacks [4] on Democratic efforts to hold those bankers accountable. The timing was no coincidence.


No coincidence at all.

A few weeks ago, Reuters [5] reported that the Ranking Republican on the Senate Banking Committee, Richard Shelby from Alabama, told a gathering of bankers that the best way to defeat reform:

Asked what bankers could do to change the agenda, Shelby said, "What you can do is elect more Republicans to the U.S. Senate, that would help immensely." He asked each of the attendees to send $10,000 to Roy Blunt, a former House leader who is now running for Senate as a Republican in Missouri.





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Source URL:
http://www.citizensforethics.org/node/44724
Links:
[1] http://www.huffingtonpost.com/chris-harris/after-hobnobbing-with-ban_b_536005.html
[2] http://online.wsj.com/article/SB20001424052748703575004575043612216461790.html#printMode
[3] http://www.foxbusiness.com/story/markets/industries/government/street-execs-pols-earful-financial-reform/
[4] http://mediamattersaction.org/factcheck/201004130004
[5] http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE62H3Q520100318

Mr. Blunt and buddies

New website lists some of Mr. Blunts insider buddies. nice to have buddies and this is not a full listing


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http://www.theveryworstofwashington.com/characters#roy_blunt


example of dozen or so buddies listed


Congressman Roy Blunt
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Congressman Roy Blunt, elected to the House of Representatives in 1996, quickly established himself as an influential power broker in the halls of Congress and on K Street. He rose through the ranks to become Majority Whip under Tom DeLay and briefly took his place as Majority Leader after DeLay resigned in disgrace. Named one of the 13 most corrupt members of Congress by an independent watchdog group, Blunt is known for his close ties with K Street’s lobbyist community. His wife Abigail and his three adult children are lobbyists too. According to the Washington Post, Blunt built an extensive political machine characterized by “fundraising committees, extensive favor-giving and alliances with Republican lobbyists.” For example, hours before the final vote on a Homeland Security bill, Blunt was caught trying to insert a special provision for tobacco giant Phillip Morris, for whom his son and current wife were lobbyists. Blunt also voted to weaken the ban on lobbyists’ gifts to members of Congress, and took dozens of trips on corporate jets – including trips provided by Brent Wilkes who was convicted of bribery. Congressman Blunt was a close associate of convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Blunt received thousands of dollars from Abramoff and was one of only eight congressmen who were listed as a “friend of the owner” at Abramoff’s restaurant in Washington. He has taken more money from lobbyists than any other member of Congress. Now he’s running for US Senate. [Washington Post, 5/17/05, New York Times, 9/4/08, USA Today 10/04/09]
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Perlman Blunt
Abigail Perlman Blunt is Congressman Blunt’s wife and frequently cited as one of Washington, DC’s top corporate lobbyists and a fixture on the DC party circuit. Abigail lobbied for Altria Corporate Services, the parent company of tobacco giant Phillip Morris, before moving to Kraft Foods (another Altria subsidiary) in 2009. According to Roll Call in 2003, Abigail “was a central part of [Altria’s] lobbying efforts in the House. Her strong ties to the Republican leadership make her one of the most successful tobacco industry lobbyists in town.” Congressman Roy Blunt raised eyebrows in 2003, when, in the fall of 2002, Roy Blunt secretly attempted to insert a provision benefiting Philip Morris, presumably on behalf of his then-girlfriend Abigail, into a homeland security bill just hours before the legislation was scheduled for a final vote. After learning of the provision, House Speaker Dennis Hastert had it removed from the proposed language, but not before raising serious questions about Congressman Blunt’s motives. Even Republicans who learned of the incident privately express concern that Blunt pushed the provision partly because of his personal relationship with a Philip Morris lobbyist. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch later wrote that Blunt’s provision “doesn’t just look bad, it is bad. Questions of nepotism and sweetheart deals for tobacco companies aside, ethical members of Congress don’t embarrass their colleagues – and betray the public – by trying to sneak legislation under the radar screen.” [Washington Post, 6/11/03; St. Louis Post Dispatch, 6/13/03; House Lobbying Disclosure Database; Roll Call, 9/8/03; Politico]
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Do we need such a senator?

betty boop for president 1932

folks might wish to make comparison with Sara P